Protection from liability

Welcome to the Tim Meakin from Toton in Nottingham blog. The UK government has adopted a non-interventionist approach to sport and there is no general law of sport. Instead, the regulation of individual sports is largely left to their national governing bodies (NGBs), which are autonomous bodies whose authority derives from a voluntary agreement between the NGB and its members, with the government only intervening where it is deemed in the public interest to do so.

Participants in sport do not enjoy blanket immunity from criminal or civil sanctions for their actions while participating in sport.

In a civil context, participants in professional sport owe a duty of care to one another, meaning they must not act negligently, recklessly or with the intention to cause harm but must instead exercise reasonable care in all circumstances. The precise nature and scope of that duty of care will differ according to the rules and characteristics of the sport in question. Unless a sport has a specified dispute mechanism by which its participants are bound, then its participants will be entitled to pursue civil claims against one another for any damages suffered (ie, personal injury claims).

In a criminal context, there is a general concept of implied sporting consent, providing sporting participants who commit dangerous acts (that might otherwise give rise to criminal liability) an exemption to being charged, provided the act in question falls within the boundaries of what could reasonably be expected in their sport. Even acts that breach of the rules of the sport may nevertheless be consented to if they fall within the practices of the sport, a concept widely referred to as the ‘playing culture’ of a sport.

Tim Meakin is a barrister at Seven Bedford Row from Toton Nottingham. He also provides both advice and representation in courts and tribunals and has undertaken a wide range of civil litigation and disciplinary cases before sports governing bodies as diverse as the Football Association, British Gymnastics, and the British Canoe Union. Visit Tim Meakin Nottingham website if you need any legal help and representation. You can also follow Tim Meakin Nottingham's latest industry news and updates on the Tim Meakin Nottingham Twitter profile. Read the latest Tim Meakin Nottingham news here for more information.

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